Watching century-old trees being moved can be mesmerizing. To us, it’s both our job and our passion. We value large trees for the heritage and history they carry with them and their meaning to communities and people.
Preserving trees is a way to give back to nature and the outdoors and to keep that history going for many generations to come. Digging and moving a tree requires a lot of planning to make sure the tree is safe, as are the people and residents around it.
For more than 40 years, we have been moving trees across the United States and abroad. We have developed techniques, machines, and tools that make our job safer and more efficient. But what is it like to move a particularly giant tree?
Our Biggest Tree Relocation
In 2016, we were asked to move a giant sequoia in Boise, Idaho. This tree is especially interesting because of its history. Its seedling was sent to Boise in 1909 by John Muir, a naturalist who was instrumental in preserving our country’s national parks, to be planted by a friend. Muir sent five seedlings in total, all collected from a forest we now call Muir Woods (located just north of the Golden Gate Bridge).
However, the “Boise Sequoia” is the last remaining of the original five trees planted.
The Boise Sequoia had grown to over 110 feet by the time we were hired to relocate the tree. You can watch here how this sequoia was moved in the middle of the night:
The encapsulated 42-foot root-ball weighed in excess of 800,000 pounds. It traveled in the middle of a Saturday night with 500 local residents guiding and cheering it along the way; everyone seeing for themselves just how big of a tree can be moved. We love seeing people encourage us because it gives meaning to our job and strengthens our passion!
How Far Do We Move Trees? From Texas to Michigan and Beyond!
We were asked by Consumers Energy to move a huge boxed tree from Texas to their headquarters in Michigan as part of their landscaping project. Please take a look at our tree relocation team and, of course, the vehicle that wheeled it all those miles. Watch as we dig up the tree and place it carefully on the bed of the tree transport truck. Also, watch us unload at their HQ and witness the delicate process needed to move such immense trees:
How Can Environmental Design Inc. Move Such Heavy Trees?
Carefully, is the simple answer! We use flat-bed trucks, diggers, tree spade trucks, cranes, and other equipment to dig out, carry, and relocate large trees.
We are particularly proud of our ArborLift® patented method of moving large trees:
ArborLift® is our system of transporting trees on pneumatic air cylinders below the tree platform. It is a gentle but strong way to move trees with less contortion, less movement on the root ball, and a greater chance of survival.
We have used this technique on hundreds of tree relocations, such as in Washington D.C., in California, in San Antonio, and at the University of Michigan.
We Love Trees So Much; We Even Grow Them Ourselves
Although we are first and foremost a tree-moving company, Environment Design Inc. also has a tree farm dedicated to growing trees to varying heights. We have a vast facility in Texas where we grow boxed trees for clients and landscaping projects—that’s where the tree was chosen for the Consumers Energy headquarters.
Watch how we have been growing 100 oaks, sycamores, and maples for the redevelopment of the main street of Richardson, Texas:
We Can Store Your Trees until You Are Ready to Replant Them
Sometimes the location you want to replant your trees is not ready yet.
We moved this tree in February of 2020 to a holding area while the new Aggie Park is being completed:
The park is slated to finish in 2021, at which point we will move the tree into its new home. By saving this tree rather than cutting it down, we’ve ensured it can be safely replanted and will now thrive and survive for decades to come, sharing its shade and beauty with the people who visit Aggie Park.
Environmental Design Can Move Almost Anything
Golf clubs, resorts, universities, and zoos have all called us to relocate trees. We have relocated trees for the White House, the 9/11 Memorial, Pebble Beach, and the San Diego Zoo:
We take pride in assisting businesses, cities, and the government with relocating mature trees and preserving the history they carry with them.
Contact now Environmental Design Inc. online or call (800) 376 4260 to discuss your tree moving project! We have offices in Texas, California, Minnesota, and Austin, and we move trees nationwide.
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